Fic: Measure Every Grief (1/5)
Title: Measure Every Grief
Authors: angelqueen04, melyanna, and miera_c
Rating: R
Summary: Atlantis struggles to cope with Elizabeth's illness and its probable outcome.
Notes: Last fic of the season, folks. Enjoy the evil. ;) (Part III is the reason for the not-safe-for-work rating.)
After leaving her father's chambers Kate walked slowly, taking a long route back to Elizabeth's study, trying to avoid having to speak to any of the lords milling around the palace. As a result she joined with Laura, who was carrying a tray of food back for the queen. Kate took the decanter from the tray and walked beside her.
Their eyes met, but it seemed that neither of them knew what to say. A little while ago they had watched as the Queen of Atalan was betrayed by one of her own advisors and forced to yield to the will of her nobles. It was difficult to say which of these blows was the worst, coming as they did on top of Lord Daniel and Lord George both being ill, and Lord Daniel not expected to recover. Kate was not sure how much more stress Elizabeth could take just now.
When they approached the last corner on the way back, a man ran out of the corridor but went in the other direction. It looked like Jack, but that seemed unlikely, given that he was the one who had spoken against Elizabeth and enabled the college to defy her. Surely he would not have come to speak to the queen as if nothing had happened. A few moments later, Kate could see the door, but the guards were gone. After everything that had happened already this morning, she got a sinking feeling in her stomach. Gathering her skirts in one hand, she hurried ahead of Laura to see what was going on.
The guards were at the far end of the corridor, rushing around the next corner. Marcus was carrying a woman's body.
Kate and Laura stood frozen for one horrified moment, just staring down the hall, before Kate regained her composure and cast about for a servant. There was a page nearby, and they shoved the food at him and ran. They did not catch up to the guards before the men had reached their destination, where the door to Elizabeth's chambers was standing open.
Inside, Marcus was laying Elizabeth down upon her bed and the rest of his men milled about, not knowing what to do or where to find anything that might be needed. Through the chaos Laura said loudly, "What manner of guards are you, to be so distraught?"
"Laura, this is no time for a joke," Marcus said, through gritted teeth.
"I am not joking," Laura snapped. "Get out of our way."
The sea of black parted and Kate and Laura passed through to the bed. Marcus moved only a little, making way for Kate to sit next to Elizabeth and feel her forehead. "She is burning up," she murmured. Elizabeth's cheeks were flushed and her breathing was shallow. "What happened?"
"Lord Jonathan came to speak with her," Marcus explained lowly. "I went in to ask if she would see him, but she was unconscious."
Knowing it was futile, Kate reached behind Elizabeth's head to feel for a welt, hoping she had merely fallen and hit her head. But there was nothing to be found. She looked to Laura, who was standing a step back from the bed. "Someone sent for Carson?" Laura asked.
Marcus nodded. "Jack went for him."
"He was planning to spend an hour or two this morning looking through his books for anything which might help. He should be here soon."
A few moments later, they could hear rapid footsteps and Carson peppering someone with questions. Jack looked overwhelmed already when he arrived with the doctor, but Kate felt little sympathy for him, after what had happened this morning.
"Kate, move," Carson ordered. Kate jumped out of the way, backing into Marcus, who steadied her with a hand at each elbow. She glanced back at him but his gaze was fixed on Carson.
"We need to bring her temperature down, but there is no ice left," Carson began almost as soon as he reached the queen. "Lord Jonathan, go to the well in the courtyard by the stables and bring up cold water. Kate, we need to get her out of these clothes." Jack exited, and quietly Marcus herded the guards out of the room. He did not need to be asked to give the queen some privacy.
Carson opened his mouth to speak again, but upon fixing his eyes on his wife he abruptly stopped. "Laura?"
There was a tightness around her mouth. "Carson..."
"Laura, go," Carson replied, his voice low and pained but firm. She weaved from one foot to the other, opening her mouth to speak, and he snapped, "Laura!"
With one guilty look at Elizabeth, Laura turned and fled the room.
Kate couldn't move for a moment. What had just happened? Why on earth had Carson sent Laura away from Elizabeth right now? She opened her mouth to demand an explanation of him but Carson sent her a sharp look and turned his full attention back to Elizabeth. Kate set aside her confusion, for the moment at least.
Marcus closed the door, staying by it while Kate climbed onto the other side of the bed to help Carson undress Elizabeth. Her hands were shaking as she and Carson maneuvered her around and dealt with the laces. The process brought back a number of unpleasant memories. It had been almost four years now since Kinsey had poisoned Elizabeth at her wedding feast. She kept reminding herself that Carson had saved Elizabeth on that night too.
"We'll need washcloths," Carson said.
"Marcus, in that trunk," Kate said, pointing at a chest near the fireplace. He rushed to it and came with his arms full of towels and cloths a few moments later.
"Perhaps not that many," said the doctor wryly.
"Set them down upon the bed," Kate said anyway, with a grateful look at the guard. Meanwhile she began to remove Elizabeth's stockings, hoping that too would help cool her body.
Marcus laid them at the foot of the bed and straightened. "Is this the fever, Beckett?"
"That is what I am trying to ascertain, Lorne," Carson said testily. He began to unbutton the top of Elizabeth's chemise, at which point Marcus turned away discreetly. "Her body is flushed, like her cousin's."
"Her cheeks have more color than they did just a few hours ago," Kate pointed out.
"Did you not notice anything this morning?" Carson asked. "Or last night?"
"I did not attend her last night," Kate replied, her voice shaking, "and this morning it was rather dark while we dressed. She complained of a headache, so I did not light the candles."
"Who attended her last night?"
"I don't know," she admitted. "Laura?"
Carson shook his head, but said nothing else. Kate did not know what to make of the exchange she had witnessed between him and Laura. What could possibly make Laura abandon the queen at such a time?
"Has she vomited at all?" Carson asked.
Kate shook her head. "She's hardly eaten in days. It's been too hot."
Carson continued to examine Elizabeth, but Marcus called Kate's attention away. "Kate, is there something I can do?"
She sat back on her heels and looked at the clothes they had removed from Elizabeth. "Gather her things," she said. "Send them down to be washed."
Marcus diligently began to gather the clothing that had been strewn about and left the room briefly. When he returned, he said quietly, "Kate, Laura is in the corridor. She's asking for you."
Kate looked at Carson, who met her eyes briefly and nodded. "Be quick about it, and do not come too close to her."
Marcus helped her down from the bed. Her ankles were sore from kneeling so long but she disregarded the pain. She left the bedroom and antechamber and found Laura in the corridor, looking nervous and even frightened.
"Laura, why did you let your husband order you out like that?" Kate said, her own anxiety making her sharper than she intended. She stalked toward Laura, but Laura backed away. "Why would you abandon Elizabeth like this?"
Laura was white as a sheet. "Kate, I..." She trailed off, and Kate thought her friend had never seemed so small and fragile.
She pressed a hand against her stomach and Kate gasped. "You're with child?" she whispered.
Laura nodded. "It is not absolutely certain yet, but I am more sure of it with every passing hour. If something were to happen - if I were to lose this child -"
Kate felt a vague stirring of alarm. Something about Laura's words unsettled her, but then Laura bit her lip, her expression grief-stricken. Kate wanted nothing more than to embrace and reassure her, but Carson's edict stood between them. They had no idea what this disease might do to a woman in Laura's condition, and Kate had no desire to learn. She could not blame either of them for avoiding that risk, even if it meant Laura must stay away from Elizabeth for now.
Laura took a deep breath. "You will keep me informed? Even if through notes slipped under my door?"
"Of course," Kate replied. "Is there anything else I can do?"
Laura held out the small satchel which the messenger from Iolan had given to Elizabeth earlier. "I went back to her study and retrieved the letters," she explained. "Kate, this fever has been in Iolan. The queen mother died from it."
For a moment Kate couldn't breathe, but she steadied herself and tried to hold in her fear. "Elizabeth is young."
"Yes," Laura agreed, though her answer sounded hollow. Both recalled how healthy Natalya had seemed during their visit in the spring.
"We will come through this, Laura," Kate insisted. "We will not lose her."
Laura nodded. "I must go. Carson would tell me I've exposed myself too much already." She took a step forward but seemed to think better of it. "Kate, take care of her."
"You know I will."
Jack ignored the pain in his knees from running up and down stairs through the castle. He had rushed to find Beckett and bring the doctor to Elizabeth's side. Now he pelted down to the courtyard well. It was the deepest in Atlantis, and the water was the coldest. He conscripted two of the soldiers who were passing by to fill buckets with the icy water and carry it back up the tower stairs to the queen's chambers.
He noticed distantly that people were staring, but he had no time to alleviate their curiosity at the moment.
The memory of finding Elizabeth lying unconscious on the floor would not soon leave him. So much had happened today, but it was this last that had shaken him to the core. He could not help wondering if his own actions had brought on this illness. What if he had harmed more than just her credibility today?
A thin curtain had been drawn on one side of Elizabeth's bed, shielding her from immediate view. He ordered the two soldiers to set their buckets down and the men left. Captain Lorne stood near the door, his fists clenched at his sides.
Kate and Beckett began soaking washcloths in the cold water and applying them hurriedly. They spoke only in fragments to each other for a few minutes, until Kate happened to glance up and spy him standing on the edge of the room. Her face grew hostile. "Thank you, my lord," she said formally, with a chill in her voice that made him wince. "You may go now."
He hesitated. Kate shot a meaningful glance towards the captain and the young man took a step forward. Though Lorne didn't raise a hand, the threat to bodily eject him from the room was clear.
Jack swallowed. "My lady, I need to know the queen's condition."
He did not know if Beckett was aware of what had transpired in the college chamber earlier in the day, but the doctor spared him only one annoyed glance. "I have not finished my evaluation yet, my lord," he said curtly.
He was herded a step closer to the door by Lorne and frowned. He looked to Kate again. "Kate, there is no one else," he pointed out quietly.
She paused for a moment as she realized he was correct. None of Elizabeth's other advisors was able to be here and the smooth functioning of the government was at risk with the queen, the Duke of Langford and the Marquis of Hammond all incapacitated. He needed to know what was going on if there was any hope of maintaining order.
Beckett, however, stepped in at that point. "Whatever politics are going on here, my lord, I need privacy to work. Wait outside."
There was no arguing with the queen's physician. Jack retired to the antechamber. As he did, Kate whispered something to Lorne, who nodded, stepped out as Jack did and departed with a single look at his men. Master Stackhouse took up a position before the door, barring entry to anyone.
Jack paced the antechamber, which did not have a great deal of space. Frustration and fear clawed at him, but he could do nothing but wait.
After the disaster in the college that morning, Teyla was almost relieved to be preparing to return to Athos. She doubted any significant business would be brought before the nobles in the next few days, and this sickness that was spreading through Atlantis had struck hard at the coastal lands. She had received increasingly urgent messages from Halling about the state of things in the village, all requesting she return soon. And she had had enough of court politics and intrigues for the moment. Returning to the mainland to confront a fever seemed a relief by comparison.
She planned to speak to Elizabeth before departing, but as she opened her door she jumped, for Captain Lorne was standing on the other side, poised to knock. He recovered himself first, bowing. "My lady, Lady Katherine asked me to fetch you."
Teyla stepped into the corridor, staring at him curiously. "Indeed?"
He did not step back, however. Instead he leaned closer and spoke lowly, "The queen is ill."
Teyla's heart seemed to leap to her throat. "Oh no."
His face was grim. "I discovered her unconscious on the floor of her study. Beckett is with her now."
She wasted no more time. The two of them began to walk quickly through the corridors. "Is it the fever?"
"It seems impossible it is anything else," Marcus said. She could easily see the self-recrimination on his face. With the fever spreading through the palace, the captain was blaming himself for not protecting the queen more carefully.
She thought back to the previous night. "I am not so certain," she told him. "You recall how distressed she was last night when I came to see her?" He nodded. "It could simply be that the last few days have burdened her more than we anticipated."
"This morning's ambush in the college could not have helped," he said, viciously. Then he colored and glanced at her. "My apologies. I know it is not my place-"
She placed a hand on his arm. "Do not worry, Marcus." She offered him a bitter smile. "I feel the same way."
They were alone in the stairwell leading up to Elizabeth's chambers. Teyla realized this was perhaps the only chance she would have to speak to him privately for some time, and there was something she had wished to ask him about for a few weeks. "Marcus, are you all right?" she asked him. When he looked at her in confusion, she added, "I heard some rumors, regarding you and Kate..."
"Teyla, do you not know better than to listen to rumors?" he asked in return, though he gave her a rueful smile. "I am fine. But thank you for your concern."
That seemed to be all he would say on the matter. Kate had been similarly reticent to discuss it. Teyla wondered how such a situation was ever to be mended if the two of them would not speak to anyone, including each other.
But then they were at the door and Teyla put the romantic tribulations of her friends aside.
Jack was pacing the antechamber. Teyla hesitated when she saw him, a fresh wave of fury engulfing her. This was not the time to bring up his appalling actions in opposition to the queen, however. She satisfied herself with glaring and seeing him attempt to avoid her gaze as much as possible.
Marcus had gone into the queen's room and closed the door. A brittle silence fell that lasted some minutes more before the door opened again and Marcus beckoned her and Jack inside.
Kate sat on the edge of the queen’s bed, wiping Elizabeth's arms with a washcloth. Even though the curtains were still mostly drawn shut, they were open enough that Teyla could see the flush on the queen's face.
Beckett approached them and Teyla's stomach turned over at his expression. He wasted no time on pleasantries. "Her Majesty's condition is dire. The blood fever has taken full hold."
"You are certain?" Jack asked stiffly.
The doctor nodded. "She has lost consciousness, and I dare not try to bleed her. The patients we attempted to bleed came close to dying when they could not stop bleeding normally." He swallowed heavily and Teyla did not want to dwell on the images his words created. "I dare not intervene with her Majesty in such a way. We can only attempt to keep her fever down and pray she has the strength to outlast it, but I must warn you, she was greatly weakened by the stress of the last several weeks. I am not sure..."
Teyla's own strength seemed to fail as Carson's words faded. She reached out and put a hand on his arm for a moment. On top of their fears for Daniel and Lord George, this was too much.
Jack was still searching for some option. "If there is anything that can be done to aid with Elizabeth's care," he began.
Carson nodded before Jack could finish. "I must speak with Master Loki. He will need to take over the care of Lord Daniel and Lord George and supervise conditions through the rest of the palace. My place is with the queen."
Jack seemed to brace himself. "I will send a messenger immediately." He pivoted and left the room.
Teyla glanced towards the bed, where Kate hovered over Elizabeth's still form. Marcus was standing near them both, arms crossed over his chest. Kate, though, was looking at Teyla, and her eyes went towards the door where Jack had just gone before returning to her.
Teyla realized suddenly that there had been a larger purpose behind her being summoned here. Kate had sent the captain of the guard for her not merely as Elizabeth's friend, but as the Countess of Athos and the queen's ally.
Lord George and Lord Daniel were still ill. There had been no word yet today on Daniel's condition. This left Jack as the most senior member of the college able to act on behalf of the country, and after his betrayal of the queen this morning, Kate had wanted someone else with power and authority present.
That Kate was thinking so strategically was not surprising, but it was alarming.
Teyla took a deep, steadying breath. She could do nothing for the queen's health, but she could take steps to protect Elizabeth's reign. Teyla nodded to Kate and quit the room. Jack was giving orders to bring the Asgard priest and lay in supplies for nursing Elizabeth at Beckett's discretion. "My lord?"
He turned to her in surprise. Teyla held her most formal expression. "I make for Athos shortly. My people are suffering from the fever, and I need to confer with my advisors. I will return as soon as possible, however."
If Jack understood the implicit threat, he made no sign of it. Teyla continued, "Before I depart, I will speak with the Earl of Heightmeyer and inform him of the situation, so that he may stand in my place during my absence."
She knew he understood her message, for she saw the flare of anger in Jack's eyes. In her current state, Teyla could not help but gain some grim satisfaction from it. However she inclined her head and left before he could speak.
After Jack had left her to talk with Elizabeth, Sarah was still restlessly angry. She tried finding Teyla again, needing some commiseration, but Teyla was packing to leave for the mainland so Sarah did not stay long.
There was something going on in the palace, however. It was hardly surprising that in the wake of such a defeat, Elizabeth would be withdrawn, but Sarah heard quite a few noblemen complain that their requests to speak to her had been turned down long before they reached the queen's door. Oddly, Jack was nowhere to be found but someone told her that he had been seen rushing away from the royal residence and then back some time later.
It was very strange, and Sarah did not like it. The sense of foreboding creeping through the halls reminded her of too many things she strove not to dwell upon.
Whatever was going on with Elizabeth, Sarah was sure Jack would wish to avoid the scrutiny of the nobles, so she went to his chambers. When she arrived, she found that Charles was already there. After the initial pleasantries were past, Sarah sat down at Jack's desk, looking out the window while Charles slowly paced.
She drummed her fingers on the desktop and tried to sort through the argument she'd had with Jack, not to mention his behavior in the college. There had been a moment when Teyla had called him a coward, and Jack had not reacted with anger but with surprise. He had not seemed that angry in the armory either, but rather upset and confused and terribly worn. So often Jack would fix his mind upon a thing and not deviate from it. It was a dangerous trait in a politician, even an unwilling one like Jack.
Sarah knew Jack's intentions were good, unlike some of the men he'd sided with, but he'd gone much too far. At least he knew it, she thought.
Charles walked up to the window and leaned back against the frame with his arms folded over his chest. The pose was almost painfully reminiscent of his father. "Sarah, why did he do this?" he asked, genuine bewilderment in his voice. "After everything he gave up for her, for this country - how could he do this?"
She hadn't seen Charles in the gallery but wasn't entirely surprised that he had been there for the assembly. "Your father is not a double-minded man. He did not do this for his own benefit."
Charles shook his head. "I do not understand this place."
"I was surprised that you came." When he made no answer, nor even lifted his eyes from the floor, Sarah pressed him further. "Charles, you must have had a reason."
"To understand the life my father chose," he said quietly, then looked straight at her. "And what he is still choosing."
Sarah didn't have to think very hard to discern his meaning. He had come to Atlantis to meet her.
"Charles, you must know that I am not trying to replace your mother," she said gently, getting to the point. "Certainly not for you, and not for your father either."
"I know." His voice was low and he looked away. "It just seems to have happened very quickly."
Sarah smiled then. "It did happen very quickly," she told him. "It was the last thing I expected when I came home."
Charles looked as though he was pondering what to say, but the door swung open before he could speak. Sarah stood and turned to the door, unsurprised to see Jack walk in.
Jack, on the other hand, was very surprised to find them there, though his expression turned grave quickly. "Father, what has happened?" Charles asked.
Jack closed the door behind him. "Elizabeth has fallen ill."
Sarah gasped softly. She had noticed the queen's pale countenance during the session, but the young lady was always rather pale. Glancing at Charles, she saw that he was equally alarmed by this news. "It is the fever?" she asked.
"Yes. She's unconscious."
With those words he half-turned away from them, wiping his mouth. Charles touched her arm lightly to get Sarah's attention, and he nodded his head toward his father. He didn't look entirely comfortable in the gesture, but she appreciated the attempt. He slipped out of the room, and Sarah walked up to Jack and wrapped her arms around his shoulders.
His arms went around her waist and he rested his forehead on her shoulder, but she could feel the tension in his body, like he would snap at the slightest pressure. Lord George was sick, as was his best friend, and now so was the woman he loved as deeply as he loved his own son. It was too much, and Sarah could not push him away.
Her hands touched his hair, and he lifted his head. "Sarah, I am sorry," he said gruffly.
She tried to soothe him with a kiss. "It's all right, Jack." He gave her a dubious look, and she amended, "We have to talk about what happened eventually, but I can wait. I believe we both have larger concerns now."
He nodded, but his pained expression remained. With hesitation, he let go of her, and Sarah took a step back. "Is there anything I can do?"
Jack walked over to a chair near the hearth and sank into it stiffly. "Tell me what I am to do, Sarah."
It took her a moment, but she realized that Jack was the highest-ranking person in the country not currently afflicted. Jack, who had made a mockery of the queen's authority, was the one who would make decisions because he was the only one left to do so.
Fate, it seemed, had a sense of irony after all.
"Jack, you must inform the college," she told him, working to keep her voice even. "You cannot conceal the queen's illness from them forever. Someone will find out what is going on and it will not end well."
He nodded hesitantly. "Tomorrow morning. After what happened in the assembly this morning, I fear it might look like a coup if we announced her illness today. If I announced her illness today."
Jack reached for her hand then and she squeezed it affectionately before letting go. Sarah hated to leave him alone, but she had promised to see Teyla off, and she doubted Teyla would be eager to see Jack now.
She was at the door when he said, "Sarah." She looked over her shoulder at him. "Why was Charles here?"
There were perhaps more politic ways of putting it, but Sarah decided to be blunt with him. "He wanted to know why you spoke out against the queen. I think you should explain it to him yourself."
She left before he could answer.
Late into the evening, the frantic pace of activity since Elizabeth's collapse finally began to slow. Kate sat at the queen's bedside, periodically wiping her fevered body with a cool cloth. Carson sat in the corner of the room, flipping through some kind of medical text while glancing over in Elizabeth's direction every once in a while. The queen had awakened briefly a few times during the late afternoon, but now she lay still, asleep again.
Kate sighed. So much had happened in single day, and through it all Kate had been struck with a sense of helplessness. She had watched as Jack helped the queen's political enemies strip Elizabeth of the means to guide the country through a difficult period, unable to do anything to stop it. Now Elizabeth lay in her bed, unconscious from the fever that had gripped the northern countries for some time.
Laura's absence only made her feel more alone. Kate understood the protective measures Carson was insisting on for his wife, but it did not make it any easier. As it was, there was little more Kate could do about anything now. She had done what she could in the political situation by informing Teyla, Laura was beyond her reach to comfort or be comforted by, and Elizabeth's health had only worsened throughout the day.
Elizabeth suddenly moaned a bit from the bed, and Kate moved quickly to her side. Carson was there shortly as well. The physician leaned over the queen's prone body, but after a moment, Elizabeth grew quiet again and Carson stepped back.
"Keep trying to cool her, Kate," he instructed quietly. "If the fever does not break soon, we may have to send for a tub of cold water."
Kate reached out for the washcloth and wetted it in the nearby basin. Wringing it out a little, she again began wiping it over Elizabeth's face. "A tub of cold water?" she repeated.
He nodded. "Aye. It's a last resort. Putting her in one of those could cause her body's temperature to drop too much too quickly. That could just make matters worse."
Silence descended again and Carson eventually returned to his seat and his texts. After bathing Elizabeth's face thoroughly, Kate returned the washcloth to the basin but did not sit back down. She needed to do something else, or she might go mad.
Looking about, she spotted the satchel Laura had given her on Elizabeth's desk. Walking over to it, she opened the bag to find the letters Elizabeth had been reading just before she had collapsed. After a moment's hesitation, Kate opened them.
One letter officially notified Elizabeth of the death of the queen mother from the fever. Laura had told Kate as much, but Kate was shocked to read that Radek would become King of Iolan, rather than Natalya's young son. She wondered what reason there was behind changing the succession again as she turned to the second letter. It was a personal note in Radek's own hand. He wrote of the decision of Iolan's nobility, the illness that had taken his sister, and lastly of his coming marriage to Lady Jean Miller.
Kate was startled. She had not known that the prince had held Lady Miller in any particular regard. Jeannie was a lovely woman, and quite spirited, as Kate remembered all too well from their risky investigation of Lord Simmons. But at the time Radek had seemed quite enamored of Elizabeth.
"Carson?" He looked up and she held out the letters. "I think you should look at these. They're from Iolan. Elizabeth was given these letters just before she collapsed."
He came to her and tilted the papers towards the light to read them. She saw her own surprise reflected in his face. "Oh my."
Kate looked at the bed. "Do you think this might have something to do with her illness?" Not that Elizabeth was some weeping maiden from a fairy tale who would fall to pieces to learn a former suitor had pledged himself to another woman, but still.
Carson sighed. "It very well might have. She may have had one too many great shocks for a single day."
Kate's heart ached all over again as she returned to the bedside and resumed wiping Elizabeth's face with the washcloth. For Elizabeth to have suffered such a reversal with her own college of lords, then to learn that Radek - who had seemed genuinely devoted to her just a short time ago - was marrying another woman would be one final, cruel blow. Kate knew enough of court politics to realize that the future king of Iolan marrying a common-born woman who was now a widow was not a strategic move, but one born of emotion.
Elizabeth had endured enough grief regarding her heart recently, and now this.
She thought of John and paused. Though Elizabeth had rarely spoken of him, Kate had no doubt that Elizabeth was in love with John. She was not as certain of John's feelings, but everyone had known he cared for Elizabeth as more than his sovereign queen. Of course, it might very well be that John no longer felt that way, or that he considered Elizabeth nothing more than a memory belonging to the past.
Kate doubted it was so herself.
More importantly, Elizabeth had felt John's absence keenly for all these months, hoping against hope for him to return. If there was an opportune moment for him to do so, it was now.
She glanced at the desk, where Elizabeth’s writing tools were laid out neatly. Should she…?
After a moment, she straightened. She would. No matter what his circumstances were at this point, John deserved a chance to decide whether or not he could be spared from Caldora to see Elizabeth, perhaps for the last time.
The note was brief, almost curt, but she could not spare much energy for delicacy just then. When she had finished, she summoned a messenger and gave him explicit instructions. It was rash, perhaps, to use a royal messenger on such a personal errand, but it gave her some tiny sense of control. At the least, John would have time to prepare himself.
She had just returned to her chair next to Elizabeth's bed when the door opened to reveal Marcus. She watched his eyes go first to Elizabeth's prone form, and then sweep the room until they landed on Carson, who was staring at him expectantly.
"Carson," he said, "we just received a message from Master Loki. Lord George has awakened."
Authors: angelqueen04, melyanna, and miera_c
Rating: R
Summary: Atlantis struggles to cope with Elizabeth's illness and its probable outcome.
Notes: Last fic of the season, folks. Enjoy the evil. ;) (Part III is the reason for the not-safe-for-work rating.)
After leaving her father's chambers Kate walked slowly, taking a long route back to Elizabeth's study, trying to avoid having to speak to any of the lords milling around the palace. As a result she joined with Laura, who was carrying a tray of food back for the queen. Kate took the decanter from the tray and walked beside her.
Their eyes met, but it seemed that neither of them knew what to say. A little while ago they had watched as the Queen of Atalan was betrayed by one of her own advisors and forced to yield to the will of her nobles. It was difficult to say which of these blows was the worst, coming as they did on top of Lord Daniel and Lord George both being ill, and Lord Daniel not expected to recover. Kate was not sure how much more stress Elizabeth could take just now.
When they approached the last corner on the way back, a man ran out of the corridor but went in the other direction. It looked like Jack, but that seemed unlikely, given that he was the one who had spoken against Elizabeth and enabled the college to defy her. Surely he would not have come to speak to the queen as if nothing had happened. A few moments later, Kate could see the door, but the guards were gone. After everything that had happened already this morning, she got a sinking feeling in her stomach. Gathering her skirts in one hand, she hurried ahead of Laura to see what was going on.
The guards were at the far end of the corridor, rushing around the next corner. Marcus was carrying a woman's body.
Kate and Laura stood frozen for one horrified moment, just staring down the hall, before Kate regained her composure and cast about for a servant. There was a page nearby, and they shoved the food at him and ran. They did not catch up to the guards before the men had reached their destination, where the door to Elizabeth's chambers was standing open.
Inside, Marcus was laying Elizabeth down upon her bed and the rest of his men milled about, not knowing what to do or where to find anything that might be needed. Through the chaos Laura said loudly, "What manner of guards are you, to be so distraught?"
"Laura, this is no time for a joke," Marcus said, through gritted teeth.
"I am not joking," Laura snapped. "Get out of our way."
The sea of black parted and Kate and Laura passed through to the bed. Marcus moved only a little, making way for Kate to sit next to Elizabeth and feel her forehead. "She is burning up," she murmured. Elizabeth's cheeks were flushed and her breathing was shallow. "What happened?"
"Lord Jonathan came to speak with her," Marcus explained lowly. "I went in to ask if she would see him, but she was unconscious."
Knowing it was futile, Kate reached behind Elizabeth's head to feel for a welt, hoping she had merely fallen and hit her head. But there was nothing to be found. She looked to Laura, who was standing a step back from the bed. "Someone sent for Carson?" Laura asked.
Marcus nodded. "Jack went for him."
"He was planning to spend an hour or two this morning looking through his books for anything which might help. He should be here soon."
A few moments later, they could hear rapid footsteps and Carson peppering someone with questions. Jack looked overwhelmed already when he arrived with the doctor, but Kate felt little sympathy for him, after what had happened this morning.
"Kate, move," Carson ordered. Kate jumped out of the way, backing into Marcus, who steadied her with a hand at each elbow. She glanced back at him but his gaze was fixed on Carson.
"We need to bring her temperature down, but there is no ice left," Carson began almost as soon as he reached the queen. "Lord Jonathan, go to the well in the courtyard by the stables and bring up cold water. Kate, we need to get her out of these clothes." Jack exited, and quietly Marcus herded the guards out of the room. He did not need to be asked to give the queen some privacy.
Carson opened his mouth to speak again, but upon fixing his eyes on his wife he abruptly stopped. "Laura?"
There was a tightness around her mouth. "Carson..."
"Laura, go," Carson replied, his voice low and pained but firm. She weaved from one foot to the other, opening her mouth to speak, and he snapped, "Laura!"
With one guilty look at Elizabeth, Laura turned and fled the room.
Kate couldn't move for a moment. What had just happened? Why on earth had Carson sent Laura away from Elizabeth right now? She opened her mouth to demand an explanation of him but Carson sent her a sharp look and turned his full attention back to Elizabeth. Kate set aside her confusion, for the moment at least.
Marcus closed the door, staying by it while Kate climbed onto the other side of the bed to help Carson undress Elizabeth. Her hands were shaking as she and Carson maneuvered her around and dealt with the laces. The process brought back a number of unpleasant memories. It had been almost four years now since Kinsey had poisoned Elizabeth at her wedding feast. She kept reminding herself that Carson had saved Elizabeth on that night too.
"We'll need washcloths," Carson said.
"Marcus, in that trunk," Kate said, pointing at a chest near the fireplace. He rushed to it and came with his arms full of towels and cloths a few moments later.
"Perhaps not that many," said the doctor wryly.
"Set them down upon the bed," Kate said anyway, with a grateful look at the guard. Meanwhile she began to remove Elizabeth's stockings, hoping that too would help cool her body.
Marcus laid them at the foot of the bed and straightened. "Is this the fever, Beckett?"
"That is what I am trying to ascertain, Lorne," Carson said testily. He began to unbutton the top of Elizabeth's chemise, at which point Marcus turned away discreetly. "Her body is flushed, like her cousin's."
"Her cheeks have more color than they did just a few hours ago," Kate pointed out.
"Did you not notice anything this morning?" Carson asked. "Or last night?"
"I did not attend her last night," Kate replied, her voice shaking, "and this morning it was rather dark while we dressed. She complained of a headache, so I did not light the candles."
"Who attended her last night?"
"I don't know," she admitted. "Laura?"
Carson shook his head, but said nothing else. Kate did not know what to make of the exchange she had witnessed between him and Laura. What could possibly make Laura abandon the queen at such a time?
"Has she vomited at all?" Carson asked.
Kate shook her head. "She's hardly eaten in days. It's been too hot."
Carson continued to examine Elizabeth, but Marcus called Kate's attention away. "Kate, is there something I can do?"
She sat back on her heels and looked at the clothes they had removed from Elizabeth. "Gather her things," she said. "Send them down to be washed."
Marcus diligently began to gather the clothing that had been strewn about and left the room briefly. When he returned, he said quietly, "Kate, Laura is in the corridor. She's asking for you."
Kate looked at Carson, who met her eyes briefly and nodded. "Be quick about it, and do not come too close to her."
Marcus helped her down from the bed. Her ankles were sore from kneeling so long but she disregarded the pain. She left the bedroom and antechamber and found Laura in the corridor, looking nervous and even frightened.
"Laura, why did you let your husband order you out like that?" Kate said, her own anxiety making her sharper than she intended. She stalked toward Laura, but Laura backed away. "Why would you abandon Elizabeth like this?"
Laura was white as a sheet. "Kate, I..." She trailed off, and Kate thought her friend had never seemed so small and fragile.
She pressed a hand against her stomach and Kate gasped. "You're with child?" she whispered.
Laura nodded. "It is not absolutely certain yet, but I am more sure of it with every passing hour. If something were to happen - if I were to lose this child -"
Kate felt a vague stirring of alarm. Something about Laura's words unsettled her, but then Laura bit her lip, her expression grief-stricken. Kate wanted nothing more than to embrace and reassure her, but Carson's edict stood between them. They had no idea what this disease might do to a woman in Laura's condition, and Kate had no desire to learn. She could not blame either of them for avoiding that risk, even if it meant Laura must stay away from Elizabeth for now.
Laura took a deep breath. "You will keep me informed? Even if through notes slipped under my door?"
"Of course," Kate replied. "Is there anything else I can do?"
Laura held out the small satchel which the messenger from Iolan had given to Elizabeth earlier. "I went back to her study and retrieved the letters," she explained. "Kate, this fever has been in Iolan. The queen mother died from it."
For a moment Kate couldn't breathe, but she steadied herself and tried to hold in her fear. "Elizabeth is young."
"Yes," Laura agreed, though her answer sounded hollow. Both recalled how healthy Natalya had seemed during their visit in the spring.
"We will come through this, Laura," Kate insisted. "We will not lose her."
Laura nodded. "I must go. Carson would tell me I've exposed myself too much already." She took a step forward but seemed to think better of it. "Kate, take care of her."
"You know I will."
Jack ignored the pain in his knees from running up and down stairs through the castle. He had rushed to find Beckett and bring the doctor to Elizabeth's side. Now he pelted down to the courtyard well. It was the deepest in Atlantis, and the water was the coldest. He conscripted two of the soldiers who were passing by to fill buckets with the icy water and carry it back up the tower stairs to the queen's chambers.
He noticed distantly that people were staring, but he had no time to alleviate their curiosity at the moment.
The memory of finding Elizabeth lying unconscious on the floor would not soon leave him. So much had happened today, but it was this last that had shaken him to the core. He could not help wondering if his own actions had brought on this illness. What if he had harmed more than just her credibility today?
A thin curtain had been drawn on one side of Elizabeth's bed, shielding her from immediate view. He ordered the two soldiers to set their buckets down and the men left. Captain Lorne stood near the door, his fists clenched at his sides.
Kate and Beckett began soaking washcloths in the cold water and applying them hurriedly. They spoke only in fragments to each other for a few minutes, until Kate happened to glance up and spy him standing on the edge of the room. Her face grew hostile. "Thank you, my lord," she said formally, with a chill in her voice that made him wince. "You may go now."
He hesitated. Kate shot a meaningful glance towards the captain and the young man took a step forward. Though Lorne didn't raise a hand, the threat to bodily eject him from the room was clear.
Jack swallowed. "My lady, I need to know the queen's condition."
He did not know if Beckett was aware of what had transpired in the college chamber earlier in the day, but the doctor spared him only one annoyed glance. "I have not finished my evaluation yet, my lord," he said curtly.
He was herded a step closer to the door by Lorne and frowned. He looked to Kate again. "Kate, there is no one else," he pointed out quietly.
She paused for a moment as she realized he was correct. None of Elizabeth's other advisors was able to be here and the smooth functioning of the government was at risk with the queen, the Duke of Langford and the Marquis of Hammond all incapacitated. He needed to know what was going on if there was any hope of maintaining order.
Beckett, however, stepped in at that point. "Whatever politics are going on here, my lord, I need privacy to work. Wait outside."
There was no arguing with the queen's physician. Jack retired to the antechamber. As he did, Kate whispered something to Lorne, who nodded, stepped out as Jack did and departed with a single look at his men. Master Stackhouse took up a position before the door, barring entry to anyone.
Jack paced the antechamber, which did not have a great deal of space. Frustration and fear clawed at him, but he could do nothing but wait.
After the disaster in the college that morning, Teyla was almost relieved to be preparing to return to Athos. She doubted any significant business would be brought before the nobles in the next few days, and this sickness that was spreading through Atlantis had struck hard at the coastal lands. She had received increasingly urgent messages from Halling about the state of things in the village, all requesting she return soon. And she had had enough of court politics and intrigues for the moment. Returning to the mainland to confront a fever seemed a relief by comparison.
She planned to speak to Elizabeth before departing, but as she opened her door she jumped, for Captain Lorne was standing on the other side, poised to knock. He recovered himself first, bowing. "My lady, Lady Katherine asked me to fetch you."
Teyla stepped into the corridor, staring at him curiously. "Indeed?"
He did not step back, however. Instead he leaned closer and spoke lowly, "The queen is ill."
Teyla's heart seemed to leap to her throat. "Oh no."
His face was grim. "I discovered her unconscious on the floor of her study. Beckett is with her now."
She wasted no more time. The two of them began to walk quickly through the corridors. "Is it the fever?"
"It seems impossible it is anything else," Marcus said. She could easily see the self-recrimination on his face. With the fever spreading through the palace, the captain was blaming himself for not protecting the queen more carefully.
She thought back to the previous night. "I am not so certain," she told him. "You recall how distressed she was last night when I came to see her?" He nodded. "It could simply be that the last few days have burdened her more than we anticipated."
"This morning's ambush in the college could not have helped," he said, viciously. Then he colored and glanced at her. "My apologies. I know it is not my place-"
She placed a hand on his arm. "Do not worry, Marcus." She offered him a bitter smile. "I feel the same way."
They were alone in the stairwell leading up to Elizabeth's chambers. Teyla realized this was perhaps the only chance she would have to speak to him privately for some time, and there was something she had wished to ask him about for a few weeks. "Marcus, are you all right?" she asked him. When he looked at her in confusion, she added, "I heard some rumors, regarding you and Kate..."
"Teyla, do you not know better than to listen to rumors?" he asked in return, though he gave her a rueful smile. "I am fine. But thank you for your concern."
That seemed to be all he would say on the matter. Kate had been similarly reticent to discuss it. Teyla wondered how such a situation was ever to be mended if the two of them would not speak to anyone, including each other.
But then they were at the door and Teyla put the romantic tribulations of her friends aside.
Jack was pacing the antechamber. Teyla hesitated when she saw him, a fresh wave of fury engulfing her. This was not the time to bring up his appalling actions in opposition to the queen, however. She satisfied herself with glaring and seeing him attempt to avoid her gaze as much as possible.
Marcus had gone into the queen's room and closed the door. A brittle silence fell that lasted some minutes more before the door opened again and Marcus beckoned her and Jack inside.
Kate sat on the edge of the queen’s bed, wiping Elizabeth's arms with a washcloth. Even though the curtains were still mostly drawn shut, they were open enough that Teyla could see the flush on the queen's face.
Beckett approached them and Teyla's stomach turned over at his expression. He wasted no time on pleasantries. "Her Majesty's condition is dire. The blood fever has taken full hold."
"You are certain?" Jack asked stiffly.
The doctor nodded. "She has lost consciousness, and I dare not try to bleed her. The patients we attempted to bleed came close to dying when they could not stop bleeding normally." He swallowed heavily and Teyla did not want to dwell on the images his words created. "I dare not intervene with her Majesty in such a way. We can only attempt to keep her fever down and pray she has the strength to outlast it, but I must warn you, she was greatly weakened by the stress of the last several weeks. I am not sure..."
Teyla's own strength seemed to fail as Carson's words faded. She reached out and put a hand on his arm for a moment. On top of their fears for Daniel and Lord George, this was too much.
Jack was still searching for some option. "If there is anything that can be done to aid with Elizabeth's care," he began.
Carson nodded before Jack could finish. "I must speak with Master Loki. He will need to take over the care of Lord Daniel and Lord George and supervise conditions through the rest of the palace. My place is with the queen."
Jack seemed to brace himself. "I will send a messenger immediately." He pivoted and left the room.
Teyla glanced towards the bed, where Kate hovered over Elizabeth's still form. Marcus was standing near them both, arms crossed over his chest. Kate, though, was looking at Teyla, and her eyes went towards the door where Jack had just gone before returning to her.
Teyla realized suddenly that there had been a larger purpose behind her being summoned here. Kate had sent the captain of the guard for her not merely as Elizabeth's friend, but as the Countess of Athos and the queen's ally.
Lord George and Lord Daniel were still ill. There had been no word yet today on Daniel's condition. This left Jack as the most senior member of the college able to act on behalf of the country, and after his betrayal of the queen this morning, Kate had wanted someone else with power and authority present.
That Kate was thinking so strategically was not surprising, but it was alarming.
Teyla took a deep, steadying breath. She could do nothing for the queen's health, but she could take steps to protect Elizabeth's reign. Teyla nodded to Kate and quit the room. Jack was giving orders to bring the Asgard priest and lay in supplies for nursing Elizabeth at Beckett's discretion. "My lord?"
He turned to her in surprise. Teyla held her most formal expression. "I make for Athos shortly. My people are suffering from the fever, and I need to confer with my advisors. I will return as soon as possible, however."
If Jack understood the implicit threat, he made no sign of it. Teyla continued, "Before I depart, I will speak with the Earl of Heightmeyer and inform him of the situation, so that he may stand in my place during my absence."
She knew he understood her message, for she saw the flare of anger in Jack's eyes. In her current state, Teyla could not help but gain some grim satisfaction from it. However she inclined her head and left before he could speak.
After Jack had left her to talk with Elizabeth, Sarah was still restlessly angry. She tried finding Teyla again, needing some commiseration, but Teyla was packing to leave for the mainland so Sarah did not stay long.
There was something going on in the palace, however. It was hardly surprising that in the wake of such a defeat, Elizabeth would be withdrawn, but Sarah heard quite a few noblemen complain that their requests to speak to her had been turned down long before they reached the queen's door. Oddly, Jack was nowhere to be found but someone told her that he had been seen rushing away from the royal residence and then back some time later.
It was very strange, and Sarah did not like it. The sense of foreboding creeping through the halls reminded her of too many things she strove not to dwell upon.
Whatever was going on with Elizabeth, Sarah was sure Jack would wish to avoid the scrutiny of the nobles, so she went to his chambers. When she arrived, she found that Charles was already there. After the initial pleasantries were past, Sarah sat down at Jack's desk, looking out the window while Charles slowly paced.
She drummed her fingers on the desktop and tried to sort through the argument she'd had with Jack, not to mention his behavior in the college. There had been a moment when Teyla had called him a coward, and Jack had not reacted with anger but with surprise. He had not seemed that angry in the armory either, but rather upset and confused and terribly worn. So often Jack would fix his mind upon a thing and not deviate from it. It was a dangerous trait in a politician, even an unwilling one like Jack.
Sarah knew Jack's intentions were good, unlike some of the men he'd sided with, but he'd gone much too far. At least he knew it, she thought.
Charles walked up to the window and leaned back against the frame with his arms folded over his chest. The pose was almost painfully reminiscent of his father. "Sarah, why did he do this?" he asked, genuine bewilderment in his voice. "After everything he gave up for her, for this country - how could he do this?"
She hadn't seen Charles in the gallery but wasn't entirely surprised that he had been there for the assembly. "Your father is not a double-minded man. He did not do this for his own benefit."
Charles shook his head. "I do not understand this place."
"I was surprised that you came." When he made no answer, nor even lifted his eyes from the floor, Sarah pressed him further. "Charles, you must have had a reason."
"To understand the life my father chose," he said quietly, then looked straight at her. "And what he is still choosing."
Sarah didn't have to think very hard to discern his meaning. He had come to Atlantis to meet her.
"Charles, you must know that I am not trying to replace your mother," she said gently, getting to the point. "Certainly not for you, and not for your father either."
"I know." His voice was low and he looked away. "It just seems to have happened very quickly."
Sarah smiled then. "It did happen very quickly," she told him. "It was the last thing I expected when I came home."
Charles looked as though he was pondering what to say, but the door swung open before he could speak. Sarah stood and turned to the door, unsurprised to see Jack walk in.
Jack, on the other hand, was very surprised to find them there, though his expression turned grave quickly. "Father, what has happened?" Charles asked.
Jack closed the door behind him. "Elizabeth has fallen ill."
Sarah gasped softly. She had noticed the queen's pale countenance during the session, but the young lady was always rather pale. Glancing at Charles, she saw that he was equally alarmed by this news. "It is the fever?" she asked.
"Yes. She's unconscious."
With those words he half-turned away from them, wiping his mouth. Charles touched her arm lightly to get Sarah's attention, and he nodded his head toward his father. He didn't look entirely comfortable in the gesture, but she appreciated the attempt. He slipped out of the room, and Sarah walked up to Jack and wrapped her arms around his shoulders.
His arms went around her waist and he rested his forehead on her shoulder, but she could feel the tension in his body, like he would snap at the slightest pressure. Lord George was sick, as was his best friend, and now so was the woman he loved as deeply as he loved his own son. It was too much, and Sarah could not push him away.
Her hands touched his hair, and he lifted his head. "Sarah, I am sorry," he said gruffly.
She tried to soothe him with a kiss. "It's all right, Jack." He gave her a dubious look, and she amended, "We have to talk about what happened eventually, but I can wait. I believe we both have larger concerns now."
He nodded, but his pained expression remained. With hesitation, he let go of her, and Sarah took a step back. "Is there anything I can do?"
Jack walked over to a chair near the hearth and sank into it stiffly. "Tell me what I am to do, Sarah."
It took her a moment, but she realized that Jack was the highest-ranking person in the country not currently afflicted. Jack, who had made a mockery of the queen's authority, was the one who would make decisions because he was the only one left to do so.
Fate, it seemed, had a sense of irony after all.
"Jack, you must inform the college," she told him, working to keep her voice even. "You cannot conceal the queen's illness from them forever. Someone will find out what is going on and it will not end well."
He nodded hesitantly. "Tomorrow morning. After what happened in the assembly this morning, I fear it might look like a coup if we announced her illness today. If I announced her illness today."
Jack reached for her hand then and she squeezed it affectionately before letting go. Sarah hated to leave him alone, but she had promised to see Teyla off, and she doubted Teyla would be eager to see Jack now.
She was at the door when he said, "Sarah." She looked over her shoulder at him. "Why was Charles here?"
There were perhaps more politic ways of putting it, but Sarah decided to be blunt with him. "He wanted to know why you spoke out against the queen. I think you should explain it to him yourself."
She left before he could answer.
Late into the evening, the frantic pace of activity since Elizabeth's collapse finally began to slow. Kate sat at the queen's bedside, periodically wiping her fevered body with a cool cloth. Carson sat in the corner of the room, flipping through some kind of medical text while glancing over in Elizabeth's direction every once in a while. The queen had awakened briefly a few times during the late afternoon, but now she lay still, asleep again.
Kate sighed. So much had happened in single day, and through it all Kate had been struck with a sense of helplessness. She had watched as Jack helped the queen's political enemies strip Elizabeth of the means to guide the country through a difficult period, unable to do anything to stop it. Now Elizabeth lay in her bed, unconscious from the fever that had gripped the northern countries for some time.
Laura's absence only made her feel more alone. Kate understood the protective measures Carson was insisting on for his wife, but it did not make it any easier. As it was, there was little more Kate could do about anything now. She had done what she could in the political situation by informing Teyla, Laura was beyond her reach to comfort or be comforted by, and Elizabeth's health had only worsened throughout the day.
Elizabeth suddenly moaned a bit from the bed, and Kate moved quickly to her side. Carson was there shortly as well. The physician leaned over the queen's prone body, but after a moment, Elizabeth grew quiet again and Carson stepped back.
"Keep trying to cool her, Kate," he instructed quietly. "If the fever does not break soon, we may have to send for a tub of cold water."
Kate reached out for the washcloth and wetted it in the nearby basin. Wringing it out a little, she again began wiping it over Elizabeth's face. "A tub of cold water?" she repeated.
He nodded. "Aye. It's a last resort. Putting her in one of those could cause her body's temperature to drop too much too quickly. That could just make matters worse."
Silence descended again and Carson eventually returned to his seat and his texts. After bathing Elizabeth's face thoroughly, Kate returned the washcloth to the basin but did not sit back down. She needed to do something else, or she might go mad.
Looking about, she spotted the satchel Laura had given her on Elizabeth's desk. Walking over to it, she opened the bag to find the letters Elizabeth had been reading just before she had collapsed. After a moment's hesitation, Kate opened them.
One letter officially notified Elizabeth of the death of the queen mother from the fever. Laura had told Kate as much, but Kate was shocked to read that Radek would become King of Iolan, rather than Natalya's young son. She wondered what reason there was behind changing the succession again as she turned to the second letter. It was a personal note in Radek's own hand. He wrote of the decision of Iolan's nobility, the illness that had taken his sister, and lastly of his coming marriage to Lady Jean Miller.
Kate was startled. She had not known that the prince had held Lady Miller in any particular regard. Jeannie was a lovely woman, and quite spirited, as Kate remembered all too well from their risky investigation of Lord Simmons. But at the time Radek had seemed quite enamored of Elizabeth.
"Carson?" He looked up and she held out the letters. "I think you should look at these. They're from Iolan. Elizabeth was given these letters just before she collapsed."
He came to her and tilted the papers towards the light to read them. She saw her own surprise reflected in his face. "Oh my."
Kate looked at the bed. "Do you think this might have something to do with her illness?" Not that Elizabeth was some weeping maiden from a fairy tale who would fall to pieces to learn a former suitor had pledged himself to another woman, but still.
Carson sighed. "It very well might have. She may have had one too many great shocks for a single day."
Kate's heart ached all over again as she returned to the bedside and resumed wiping Elizabeth's face with the washcloth. For Elizabeth to have suffered such a reversal with her own college of lords, then to learn that Radek - who had seemed genuinely devoted to her just a short time ago - was marrying another woman would be one final, cruel blow. Kate knew enough of court politics to realize that the future king of Iolan marrying a common-born woman who was now a widow was not a strategic move, but one born of emotion.
Elizabeth had endured enough grief regarding her heart recently, and now this.
She thought of John and paused. Though Elizabeth had rarely spoken of him, Kate had no doubt that Elizabeth was in love with John. She was not as certain of John's feelings, but everyone had known he cared for Elizabeth as more than his sovereign queen. Of course, it might very well be that John no longer felt that way, or that he considered Elizabeth nothing more than a memory belonging to the past.
Kate doubted it was so herself.
More importantly, Elizabeth had felt John's absence keenly for all these months, hoping against hope for him to return. If there was an opportune moment for him to do so, it was now.
She glanced at the desk, where Elizabeth’s writing tools were laid out neatly. Should she…?
After a moment, she straightened. She would. No matter what his circumstances were at this point, John deserved a chance to decide whether or not he could be spared from Caldora to see Elizabeth, perhaps for the last time.
The note was brief, almost curt, but she could not spare much energy for delicacy just then. When she had finished, she summoned a messenger and gave him explicit instructions. It was rash, perhaps, to use a royal messenger on such a personal errand, but it gave her some tiny sense of control. At the least, John would have time to prepare himself.
She had just returned to her chair next to Elizabeth's bed when the door opened to reveal Marcus. She watched his eyes go first to Elizabeth's prone form, and then sweep the room until they landed on Carson, who was staring at him expectantly.
"Carson," he said, "we just received a message from Master Loki. Lord George has awakened."